iMac20,2 (2020) crashing daily and listing launchd or mds as running process

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Level 1

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iMac20,2 (2020) crashing daily and listing launchd or mds as running process

The title of the post says it all. I'm at a loss for what to do. At first I thought the problem was an external NVMe array, but that was disconnected when this morning's crash happened. I also have two external Thunderbolt drives (one for Time Machine, one for my archives). It is these external drives that appear to be engaged every time I've been in front of the machine during a crash (several have happened over night).

I've included my EtreCheckPro report.

EtreCheckPro report

iMac Line (2012 and Later)

Posted on Sep 29, 2020 5:31 AM

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Answer 1

Barney-15E

Level 10

122,420 points

Sep 29, 2020 7:38 AM in response to froghammer

I have a hard time believing it's one of the listed kernel extensions as I'd been running those without issue on a previous 27" Catalina iMac.

Then it would be a hardware fault. Take it to an Apple Store or Authorized Repair Center for evaluation.

You can try an NVRAM reset which may fix one rare cause of KPs.

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Answer 2

Barney-15E

Level 10

122,420 points

Sep 29, 2020 6:58 AM in response to froghammer

By “crash” do you mean a kernel panic? If so, it could be any of the things listed under the Kernel Extensions section.

If disk related, it could be the FUSE kext. But, all the rest could be associated with some amount of file access.

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Answer 3

Old Toad

Level 10

215,882 points

Oct 3, 2020 9:25 AM in response to froghammer

Mark your last reply as solved so others will know there's a solution and what caused it.

What were you using the 3rd party keyboard and software for? If it was for creating keyboard shortcuts, etc. give Keyboard Maestro a try. It's probably my most used and needed tool.

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Answer 4

froghammer Author

Level 1

8 points

Sep 29, 2020 7:21 AM in response to Barney-15E

Yes, I mean kernel panics: the UI stops responding and the system restarts shortly after that. I have a hard time believing it's one of the listed kernel extensions as I'd been running those without issue on a previous 27" Catalina iMac.

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Answer 5

froghammer Author

Level 1

8 points

Oct 3, 2020 8:44 AM in response to Barney-15E

I wanted to let you know you were right: it was hardware. Specifically, it is the Vortex Vibe mechanical keyboard I have (or the software I've been using to get the keys mapped correctly) that was causing the instability. I've removed both. I really appreciate the help.

-S

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iMac20,2 (2020) crashing daily and listing launchd or mds as running process

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